The birds and the bees may rule the daytime, but as soon as the sun sets, it is the bats that get to work pollinating. Worldwide, over 500 species of flowers in at least 67 plant families rely on bats as their major or exclusive pollinators. Not only are these little mammals important for pollinating so many plant species; they can be pretty darn cute too!

1. Not all bats eat insects!

Eating insects is by far the most common diet found among the 1,300 species of bats worldwide, which certainly benefits our farmers in keeping many insect species in check. However the pollinating role many of our nectar-feeding bats play is just as important.

Bats like “Blossum”, a Common Blossom Bat Syconycteris australis from Australia, pollinate the flowers of plants that have evolved to produce nectar to attract them. Scientists believe that many groups of plants have evolved to attract bats, as they are able to carry much larger amounts of pollen in their fur compared to other pollinators. The ability of bats to fly long distances is also another benefit to plants, especially those that occur in low densities or in habitats far apart from each other.

2. Flowers produce a musty, rotten odor to attract bats

While some of the flowers that attract bats can be quite beautiful, you probably wouldn’t want to receive a bouquet of them. To attract these flying mammals flowering plants have evolved a musty or rotten perfume. The smell is created by sulphur-containing compounds, which are uncommon in most floral aromas but have been found in the flowers of many plant species that specialize in bat pollination.

As well as their keen sense of smell, bats also use sight to find nectar-producing flowers. Bat flowers are often white or light-colored in an attempt to stand out against foliage or the night sky, but they also can range from brown and green to pink, fuchsia and yellow. Even though they only open at night, bat flowers are often dull in color, which scientists believe may function more as a camouflage from other visitors than as a visual cue to bats.

3. Some bats use echolocation to find flowers

You may have heard of bats using echolocation to hunt insects, but did you know some bats also use it to find nectar-producing plants? Indeed some plant species have evolved acoustic features in their flowers that make the echo of the bat’s ultrasonic call more conspicuous to their bat pollinators. These flowers often have a bell-shaped concave form, which effectively reflect the sounds the bats emit enabling them bats to easily find flowers in the dense growth of tropical rainforests.

While this helps some species, not all bats use echolocation to find nectar. Within Chiroptera, the mammal order that encompasses all bats, two distinct groups are found. The first are the small, mostly insect eating bats called Microchiroptera (micro-bats), which predominately use echolocation. While species of this group are found worldwide, nectar-feeding bats from this group only inhabit tropical and subtropical regions of the Americas.

The second group is Megachiroptera (mega-bats), a group that includes all the large bats, including flying-foxes, which predominately eat fruit and nectar. Found in the Old World tropics of Africa, Europe, and Asia these bats lack the ability to echolocate, instead relying on their sight and sense of smell to find food. While they depend entirely on vision to negotiate their environment, they appear to do so quite well even in inclement weather and on moonless nights. So the old saying “blind as a bat” really isn’t true!

4. Without bats we would have no tequila

Do you enjoy Tequila? Then you need to raise your glass to the pollinating bats that helped to bring it to us! Tequila is made from the agave plant, which relies solely on bats to pollinate its flowers and reproduce. While the bats certainly drink a lot of nectar from the agave plant, you don’t have to worry about them getting drunk! To make tequila, the base or “heart” of the blue agave plant is steamed and minced before being fermented. This part of the plant is quite removed from the giant flower stalk that the bats come in search of.

5. One species of nectar-feeding bat has the longest mammal tongue in the world

Could you imagine having a tongue that is 9 feet long? That is what it is like for the rare Anoura fistulata, a nectar-feeding bat from South America, which has the longest tongue (proportionally) of all mammals. A. fistulata is only the size of a mouse, but its tongue is around 8.5 centimeters long, making it up to 150% of its body length! With such a long tongue it couldn’t possibly keep all of it in its mouth. Instead, A. fistulata keeps the tongue in its chest, in a cavity between the heart and sternum.

6. Bats service many plants that we use for medicinal, cultural and economic purposes

Did you know that bats almost exclusively pollinate wild bananas, which originate from Southeast Asia? Bats pollinate many ecologically and economically important plants from around the world. The products that we value from these plants are more than just fruits, including fibers and timbers that we use everyday. Flying foxes, nectar and fruit eating mega bats from Australia, pollinate the dry eucalyptus forests, which provide us with timber and oils that are shipped around the world.

Mexican agave plants, a source of fiber and tequila, are solely reliant on the pollination services of several nectar-feeding bats. Many tropical and sub-tropical rainforest ecosystems also rely on bat pollinators to regenerate. Without nectar feeding bats not only would our environment suffer, but our way of living as well!

About the author

Micaela Jemison is a bat ecologist and science communicator. Originally from Australia, Micaela worked for a state government research institute as a wildlife biologist before moving the USA in 2013. She is the Communications Officer for the Australasian Bat Society and is working with Bat Conservation International on conservation projects in the Australasian region. She also is currently a research student at the Smithsonian Natural History Museum in Washington DC.

Images of Australian baby bats in rehabilitation, bundled up in colorful blankets and being bottle-fed are now a common sight on the Internet as heat waves become more frequent Down Under. Australia is home to four species of flying fox, some of the world’s largest fruit eating mega bats. These mega bats play a vital role in the regeneration of Australia’s forests, pollinating and dispersing the seeds of numerous native plant species.

Record high temperatures of 109F or more last week however have devastated these flying fox colonies with estimates of up to 100,000 bats killed in the heat. As the soaring temperatures continue, bat rehabilitators are struggling to cope with influx of hundreds of dehydrated and heat stressed animals as they fall from the trees all over southeastern Queensland. This however is not an isolated incident, with similar events having occurred across the country in past summers with increasing frequency over the last decade.

Why are flying foxes dying?

Although adapted to the warm Australian climate, these large mega bats have trouble regulating their body temperature when mercury starts to rise above 104F.

To help combat this, flying fox colonies naturally take up roost in trees close by rivers and water bodies, where they can access water for drinking and drenching their fur to help cool them down. However habitat loss and urban encroachment has restricted the number suitable roost sites near water, forcing many colonies to take up roost in areas with little water close by.

Several of the flying fox species also give birth and nurse their young over the summer months. Nursing mothers naturally have an elevated body temperature at this time and have greater difficulty keeping cool when the environment heats up. Because of this, the vast majority of female bats that die from the heat are mothers with dependent young. Flying fox pups are generally less able to regulate their body temperature than adults and thus too are at high risk from extreme heat. If they don’t first die from the high temperatures, they often succumb to dehydration and starvation once they have lost their mothers.

Could this be linked to Climate Change?

Between 1994 and 2008, more than 30,000 flying foxes died in colonies across Australia from heat stress in 18 separate extreme heat events. Since then we have seen larger and seemingly more frequent fatal heat events, with 15,000 flying foxes dying in Sydney alone in 2013 and up to 100,000 across Australia in the last few days. Climate models predict that these extreme heat events are likely to increase in frequency, intensity and duration in the coming years.

This is of great concern to scientists not only due to the increased risk of these “die off” events, but also for the long term impact it will have on the recovery of several of these already threatened species. The Grey-headed Flying fox was once considered an abundant species with numbers estimated in the many millions. Now less than 400 000 remain. As these flying foxes only have one pup a year, the loss of these mothers and pups due to extreme heat events poses a real risk to the survival of this vulnerable species and the important ecosystem services its provides.

But the bats are not alone in coping with the heat—thanks to dedicated groups like Bat Conservation and Rescue QLD who have rescued many flying foxes and will continue to help future injured wildlife. This issue just stresses the importance of taking action both on the ground for wildlife and with legislation that mitigates our impact.

About the author

Micaela Jemisonis a bat ecologist and science communicator. Originally from Australia, Micaela worked for a state government research institute as a wildlife biologist before moving the USA in 2013. She is the Communications Manager for Bat Conservation International and a member of the mammal department at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington DC.